Apparently lots of folks at the State Department have been fired for snooping the passports of celebs and poligicians. From the article:

Supervisors recorded each instance a file was viewed because the applications in question belonged to members of a select group of several hundred citizens whose passport files were "flagged" for extra protection due to their visibility, the officials said. Among these people are government leaders, movie stars andathletes, the officials said.The list maintained by Bureau of Consular Affairs has included as many as 500 people at any one time, they said. The list is kept secret partly to deter workers from making unauthorized inquiries into high-profile records. Although there are no formal criteria for inclusion, people on the list are deemed to warrant special consideration because of theirpublic status, the officials said.

I'm trying to think what information was required lo those many moons ago when I got my passport. I mean, other than my vitals and where/when I've traveled, what really is contained in my passport files? They never axed me what toothpaste I use, or what style of dining room seating I prefer. What, other than the woefully mis-used social security number and other basic details is really contained in those files? Are there different criteria for granting/processing passports for the elite? Do they have to tell whether or not they've had a nose job and anal bleaching? I'm guessing not.

This just illustrates that there's one set of rules for the wealthy/prestigious, and a whole 'nother set that applies to we mere mortals. No matter what, people should maintain their professionalism in their jobs, but to expect people to not notice people of celebrity status in their work is to stretch credulity.

Ooscray that, I say.

It's funny how when celebs want at the front of the line in restaurants in NYC and LA, they are more than delighted to bank on their celebrity, and yet they want to be able to turn off public curiosity at will.

At the nadir of his fame, a former bratpack star had a suitcase lost in travel. My girlfriend was working the phone line and the person (who was Brat-packer's assistant) apparently felt my friend wasn't acting concerned enough and said "he's so-and-so, do you know who he is?!!!" My girlfriend bit her tongue and resisted the urge to say "well, I know who he was."

When I worked for a posh department store (rhymes with steamin'-carcass), the first day of training I was with a seasoned employee when the assistant of a high-profile media person (rhymes with pliant crumble) called in to order a common household item. This was something I guarantee you have your home, and like me, you probably have never paid over a couple or few hundred dollars for one of these items. Well, the assistant was ordering two, to the tune of several thousand dollars each. Um, well, okay. Funny thing was I could fairly feel the smoke rolling out of the assistant's ears when the person training me asked them to spell [crumble]. I maintained my composure, but I admit I've giggled more than once over this through the years.

I say if they want special status, we should regard them as special, but perhaps not in the way they were hoping for. I can think of a few special treatments I'd like to dole out...